PC Hardware Review: There are some epic highs, and interesting lows, to Geil’s new gaming gear.

Geil is very well known for producing solid, enthusiast grade RAM, but it’s also getting a lot of respect for its forays – like every other vendor and their dog – into gaming peripherals. It’s a tough thing to pull off on the first attempt, too; it’s taken Thermaltake’s Tt eSports’ range a few goes to get to high quality, and while we love Corsair’s new gaming gear, there are some teething problems in the first range.

However, when John Gillooly returned from Computex last year, one of the things he raved about was Geil’s dedication to producing a great mouse. It’s taken a while, but now, at last, we can see what he was going on about. We’ve also decided to look at these two products in tandem, as they are obviously designed to be used together.

It has TWO sensors
The real talking point of the Epicgear Meduza mouse is what it calls HDST, or Hybrid Dual Sensor Technology. The Meduza is not the first mouse to offer a combination of laser and optical sensors, but it is the first mouse we’ve seen to not only let you use both, but also switch between them. There’s a simple switch in the bottom surface of the mouse that lets you pick your preference; we’re not sure we can feel any real different between using either laser or optical sensor, but I’m sure there are mousing aficionados out there who can, and who will drool over this kind of choice.

What I can say is that, performance-wise, the Meduza, at least in full HDST mode, really delivers. Geil’s built in a whole mess of features to deliver quite possibly one of the most precise gaming mice we’ve ever used. Its tracking is fast and smooth, and there’s a lift-off cut-out at a mere 1mm (though you can tweak this, if it’s not your thing) that makes lift-and-sweep movements a joy. Combined with some clever onboard algorithms to smooth out jitter, Geil’s really nailed it.

We played both strategy (Combat Mission) and FPS games (Battlefield 3) to test the Meduza, and each it excelled, always leaving you feeling utterly in control of the action. We did test with just the laser or optical sensor engaged, and while on a range of surfaces the difference was next to minimal, we couldn’t help but notice that with the individual sensors off-set from the Meduza’s center of mass, that it lead to a diagonal bias in cross-screen movement. You can compensate for it, but it’s there. However, if you stick with HDST mode, you’ll be golden.

The Meduza’s design is pretty elegant, though it may not be to some tastes. It’s asymmetrical, for a start, so lefties need not apply their sinister ways. The upper surface is a combination of smooth gloss plastic and rubber insets, and it’s quite comfy in general use, and very grippy. There are two shallow grooves on the right-hand side for pinky and ring fingers, and it’s more than possibly to simply lift the mouse with just thumb and pinky. The grooves aren’t perfect, though, and coming from Corsair’s M60 fps mouse, we did feel it was a little on the awkward side.

The bottom surface is a nice – never thought I’d be saying this – flouro orange, and the braided cable is a matching black and orange. It’s a striking, aggressive look that doesn’t go over the top.

The Teflon feet that the mouse slides along on are very cleverly rounded in profile, minimising contact with whatever surface you’re mousing on. We used the Meduza on both Geil’s Hybrid Pad, and our standard Coolermaster hard shell, and to be honest... you really do get better performance from a solid surface. The Geil matt is well made, with a seriously slick and fine weave, but we still felt more resistance from it than we’d normally like. It can also only be used in one orientation; if you, like me, rather your mat be positioned on its side, the weave becomes even harder to navigate.

Overall, Geil’s made a confident state in this space. There are better mouse mat options out there, but the Meduza is a serious contender already. It’s precision may not beat the sheer comfort of our Corsair M60, but that’s purely a personal thing – we’d have zero qualms recommending anyone looking for a new mouse to give Geil’s a try.

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